9 Match Star Ratings For AEW Full Gear 2020
3. Matt Hardy Vs. Sammy Guevara - Elite Deletion
Subjectively, this didn't work.
It went too long and diminished the joy it was able to elicit on occasion. The two mud-based gags were sublime, mind - just a fantastic one-two punch perfectly crafted to pop the tribalist, defensive base. This sort of dig proves divisive, naturally - especially when they're often so needless - but you can't not credit Matt Hardy for crafting them from the platform of the match itself. It was impossible not to pop at Gangrel. Some of the wrestling was rather exciting, and the finish was cleverly done, or it would have been, had the uneven tone and goofy soundtrack not undermined it.
Objectively, did this even work in its own, heightened context?
It's some indictment, that it felt so incongruous in the promotion that exists to serve every pro wrestling fan. Even for a forgiving critic with eclectic tastes, that uneven tone felt self-defeating. It just wouldn't end, either. It just wouldn't end. It told the story of the feud, if nothing else.
The real issue is that the Broken universe isn't an enduring match genre or wrestling philosophy, all of which AEW embraces. It was a moment in time. This was creative, funny, and maybe deserves some detached credit in isolation, but it disrupted the tone and the vibe of the show and felt ancient and kitsch.
This universe is one plate too many at the "buffet".
Star Rating: N/R